Bone Cave

Ogof yr Esgryrn

Useful Information

Location:	Midway between Swansea and Brecon on A4967. M4, exit 45, A4067 to the north 32 km. (51.831228576474984, -3.6869925918965327)
Open:	APR to OCT daily 10-15. Longer open hours during season. [2021]
Fee:	Adults GBP 16.50, Children (3-16) GBP 13, Children (0-2) free. Groups (20+): special rates, pre-booking required. Admission for 10 attractions including Dan-yr-Ogof cave, Bone Cave and Cathedral Cave. [2021]
Classification:	Karst cave
Light:	Incandescent Electric Light System
Dimension:
Guided tours:	self guided
Photography:	allowed, no tripods
Accessibility:	no
Bibliography:	Martyn Farr (1999): Dan yr Ogof: The jewel of Welsh caves, paperback, Gwasg Gomer, 1999, 78 pp, 52 colour photos, B&W photos, maps, surveys etc, ISBN: 1859026451. amazon.com The upper Swansea Valley contains the foremost showcave complex in the British Islands. Beyond the show caves are ten miles of passages of unimaginable beauty. This is a classic account of exploration from 1812 which is still continuing today. Sarah Symons (2003): The Wonders of Dan Yr Ogof, paperback, Y Lolfa, 2003, 128 pp, many photos, 4 in colour, ISBN: 0862436303. An interesting monograph on a famous show cave. A good account of the discovery in 1912 and the history of exploration since then, including the major discoveries of 1966 which were published in the Observer colour supplement.
Address:	The National Showcaves Centre for Wales, Abercrave, Swansea SA9 1GJ, Tel: +44-1639-730284. E-mail:
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

Description

It is rather simple: Bone Cave or Ogof-yr-Esgyrn is a bone cave! More than 42 human skeletons from the Bronze Age (3,000 years ago) have so far been found. The oldest bone in the cave of a red deer, is more than 7,000 years old. Other bones are from the Ice Age animals Cave Bear, Sabre Tooth Tiger, Hyena and Wolf. Other finds include silver rings, fragments of Roman pottery, bone pins, and fine bronze jewellery, which are of Roman age.

The cave contains tableaux scenes showing some related topics: archaeologists at work, a Bronze Age burial ceremony, a Bronze Age family scene, and a Roman soldier.